2017 VdF, “Le Papillon Rouge” from @domainemilan . A little bit shy on the nose to begin with but give it a minute and out comes bright red and black fruit with a meaty savory edge. In the mouth it’s lighter than you would expect from the blend, coming it at medium minus-ish. The tannins have a good little grip and the acid is superb keeping things all clean and fresh with a mineralish finish. I don’t always drink red wine during the spring/summer but when I do I want it to be one like this that can take a little chill and has decent amounts of the refreshing acid. “Soil type: Clay (argile) & Calcaire
Grapes: Grenache Noir, Syrah, Cinsault
Fermentation: Indigenous yeasts, no sulfur added
Vineyard: 3 hectares, planted late 90's, 4K vines per hectare
Quantity: 35hl/ha
It is wine, as of all exceptional products given by nature and the genius of man, the result of an exceptional plant: the vine. Henri: "It was while planting my first vine at the age of 8 that I fell in love with this exceptional plant and developed a special sensitivity with the nature that surrounded me with this plant. plant in the 1st place and when I decided to become a winemaker I always tried to do the same with my wines.”
#wine #toronto #winetoronto #torontowine #winebartoronto #torontowinebar #henrimilan #lepapillonrouge #sanssulfiteajoute #vinnature #vinbiodynamic #provence #flylikeabutterfly #grenache #syrah #cinsault

2013 Pfalz Kallstadter Riesling Kabinett Troken from @koehlerruprecht hanging out with some it’s friends to celebrate Queen Vic’s Day. Aged honey and bruised apple, while the teriary is quite strong in this one there’s still a bit of the fruit hanging around. The acid has been mellowed by the age, leaving the finish a little less bracing while holding some good minerality. Giving you a good riesling for a glass until she’s gone.
“The grapes are harvested with up to five selective pickings by hand. They're crushed and then macerated between 12 to 24 hours before undergoing spontaneous fermentation. The wines are aged in traditional oval-shaped oak or chestnut barrels ranging from 300 to 2400 litres, with up to nine months on the lees . They are lightly filtered and bottled just before next harvest.
Our capital and our quality come from the calcareous soil in Kallstadt, where our vines are grown. Protected by the Palatinate Forest and the old limestone quarries, our best Rieslings thrive on the millennia-old lime marl that permeates the various soil layers of sand, loess, clay and gravel.
The wines from these areas are distinguished by their beautiful interplay of elegance and richness. In addition, they have an extraordinary wealth of extracts and mineral flavors. The calcareous soil creates outstanding conditions for full-bodied, mature and harmonious wines.” #wine #toronto #winetoronto #torontowine #winebartoronto #torontowinebar #riesling #2013 #koelherruprecht #kabinett #troken #midliferiesling #nocrisis #agedriesling #whatchagonnadrinkwhenitallpfalzdown

We are closed today Sunday May 19th for a little Victoria day time off action. Back to work tomorrow.

2018 VdF, “Raisins Gaulois” from @domainelapierre hanging out with some of it’s older, more serious, siblings as it gets ready for a night of fun and frivolity. All the partial carbonic fruit jumping out of the glass to hit your nose, before the fun really gets going in your mouth with more fruit, low-gentle tannins and just enough savory herbaceous-ness hitting with the acid at the back to keep things clean, crisp and interesting. When you look up “glou-glou” or “vin crusháble” in the wine slang dictionary you will see this label as the textbook example.
“This cuvée from our young gamay seedlings is a gourmet and refreshing fruit explosion. It takes the Vin de France appellation, because the Beaujolais’ governing body decided to do away with the Vin de Pays designation in Beaujolais, leaving only the appellations and Vin de France. The wine is still almost all from the cru of Morgon, with a little bit of A.O.C. Beaujolais as well.
VITICULTURE / VINIFICATION
• Certified organic by Ecocert • Old-vines with naturally low yields • Organic farming used to stimulate the natural immune system of the vine • Manually harvested, as late as possible to achieve maximum ripeness
• Rigorous sorting of the grapes
• Indigenous yeasts only
• Whole cluster fermentation à l’ancienne, maintained at low temperatures ; lasts for ten to twenty days
• Wines aged on fine lees in old Burgundy barrels (from third to thirteenth passage)
• Wines are bottled unfiltered”
#wine #toronto #winetoronto #torontowine #winebartoronto #torontowinebar #raisinsgaulois #lapierre #beaujolais #gamay #gogamaygo #gamaytheforcebewithyou #gamayallday #glouglou #vincrusháble #vinnature #vinnaturel

2017 Niagara Peninsula “Cuvée Metis” from @pearlmorissette
Red with the ripe Niagara Cabernet Franc nose today but the Pinot Noir or Gamay can be dominate at other times. Light plus body in the mouth with easy but present tannins at that good Ontario acid keeping things fresh for spring. “Vinification & Élevage:
2017 Métis Rouge is a blend of 51% Pinot Noir (Home Farm vineyard, Creekshore), 37% Cabernet Franc (Home Farm vineyard) and 12% Gamay (Mitzsturak vineyard, Lincoln Lakeshore). It was harvested on September 30th, October 27th and September 30th. The Pinot and Gamay were both fermented as 100% whole-cluster, while the Cabernet Franc was 100% de- stemmed. Fermentation by indigenous yeast proceeded steadily in a combination of foudres (Pinot and Gamay) and concrete (Cabernet Franc). The wine aged in its fermentation vessels for a total of 11 months
2017 Métis Rouge was bottled unfiltered and un-fined on October 1st, 2018.
pH: 3.77
Total Acidity: 6.6 g/L
FS02: 9ppm at bottling
Alcohol: 12.5% /vol
Residual Sugar: <2 g/L
Average Brix at harvest: 22
Total Production: 969 cases of 12 bottles.” #wine #toronto #winetoronto #torontowine #winebartoronto #torontowinebar #goodtgingsgrowinontario #pearlmorissette #metis #ontariowine